Lean Hybrid Muscle Building workouts and routines are the fastest way to rapidly burn fat and build muscle.

3 Tips For Performing A One-Arm Push Up

You have to admit there is definitely a “cool factor” when it comes to the one-arm push up. This exercise is just plain tough. It combines strength, coordination and balance.

That’s why we’re going to include it in our new Lean Hybrid Muscle – Body Weight edition program. Anyhow a few weeks ago at a wedding in Niagra Falls my friend Adam Steer (circular strength coach) gave me these three tips to share with you.

Who knows, with these tips and a bit of practice you may just give “Rocky” a run for his money!

The Tighter the Lighter

Have you ever tried to pick up someone who has passed out? Did you notice how much “heavier” they seem. Compare that to picking up the same person once they have stiffened up all their muscles… To become tighter and lighter, stretch the crown of your head in one direction and your heels in the other. This will force all your stabilizer muscles into action to lengthen you out – and it’ll tighten your whole structure up too.

Lock and Load

Whether under a bench press or doing a push up, one of the big mistakes I often see is letting the shoulders drift up towards the ears. Keep your shoulders locked down away from your ears if you want to optimize the involvement of the powerful pecs and triceps. You’ll also greatly reduce your chance of injury by concentrating the force in your shoulder through structural elements instead of soft tissue.

Go Wide

Spread your feet wider apart than for a regular push up. This is part of the balancing act required for a great one arm push up. You’ll also have bring your working arm closer in to your center line.

In the book Convict Conditioning,which is all bodyweight exercises, they show a photo of a one arm pushup which is very different and more impressive than contorting your body to kinda do a one arm pushup.

I agree with Ross, spreading the legs makes it easier(& is a good place to start) where as keep them together as in the book Convict Conditioning with the feet closer together requires more stabilizers & is much more difficult. I can to the one described in this article, but am still working on the version mentioned in “Convict Conditioning”.

Once you’ve mastered the one arm, try extension pushups. Hands fully extended above your head, up on the fingers, and lift your body off the floor. When that get’s easy, put your hands out to the sides and do the same thing.